After recently selling the Y Lot for $5.25 million and hiring a broker to market the Library Lot, the city of Ann Arbor might be putting a third property up for sale.

Mayor John Hieftje and City Council Member Chuck Warpehoski, D-5th Ward, have put forward a resolution for council consideration Monday night that, if approved, would have a portion of the city-owned property at 415 W. Washington St. listed for sale.

City Administrator Steve Powers would be directed to hire a broker to sell the non-floodway portion of the site across from the YMCA.

The resolution, which requires eight votes for approval, indicates the funds would be used to further the vision for the Allen Creek Greenway.

The greenway is envisioned as a series of open spaces and trails for pedestrians and bicyclists along the north-south railroad tracks through Ann Arbor.

The 415 W. Washington property is one of three sites — along with 721 N. Main and the parking lot at First and William — where city officials have been talking for several years about developing so-called “greenway anchor parks.”

The City Council has passed resolutions in recent years reaffirming its support for the creation of the Allen Creek Greenway.

Hieftje and Warpehoski say in their resolution that creation of an Allen Creek Greenway Master Plan would strengthen the city's ability to secure outside funding for creation of non-motorized connections and mitigation of flood impacts along the greenway.

The resolution notes that University of Michigan professor Larissa Larsen is leading a graduate class project this fall to develop elements of a conceptual master plan for the greenway. With additional resources, the resolution states, that could lay the groundwork for an official Allen Creek Greenway Master Plan.

A map of the proposed Allen Creek Greenway in Ann Arbor.Courtesy of Allen Creek Greenway Conservancy

Hieftje and Warpehoski say a robust public engagement process is needed for the development of a master plan, and city staff will need the help of a consultant.

The resolution would appropriate $250,000 from the city’s general fund cash reserves for consulting services for the master plan process.

The resolution talks about creating a public space on the floodway portion of the 415 W. Washington property to serve as a catalyst for the future greenway.

Sale of the non-floodway portions of the site, the resolution states, provides the most feasible path to funding the creation of the public space, as well as demolishing the building that stands now, soil cleanup, and development of a master plan.

“Solicitation for the sale of the non-floodway portion of the site shall encourage offers that include, as a condition for sale, design of new development that is consistent with the city's historic district design guidelines for new development, private maintenance of the public space and mitigation of flood fringe impacts,” the resolution states.

Any resulting offers to purchase the property would be presented to the City Council for approval.

The resolution on Monday’s agenda would set a policy that 10 percent of the net proceeds would go to the city’s affordable housing fund, while other portions would be used to reimburse the general fund for the cost of developing a master plan.

Any remaining net proceeds would help fund land acquisition and development of the Allen Creek Greenway.

The 415 W. Washington site has been identified as the leading candidate for a future commuter rail station serving the proposed north-south WALLY commuter rail line between Ann Arbor and Howell. However, Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority officials say not much, if any, of the actual property would be needed since the rail platform would pretty much be restricted to the railroad right-of-way.

The 415 W. Washington site is considered historic, so the city would have to go to the city's Historic District Commission for permission to tear down the building.

The site originally was home to the Road Commission in the 1920s and later was used by the city as a headquarters for forestry, park operations, signs and signals, the city's radio shop and parking enforcement. Many of those operations moved to the city's new Wheeler Service Center on Stone School Road in 2007, and 415 W. Washington has been vacant since.

One idea considered for 415 W. Washington in recent years was that the existing brick building on the site — with some money — could be restored and made available to artists and others in the community as a place for studios, gatherings, meetings and performances. However, it was decided that it would cost too much.